North West employment law specialist Peninsula Business Services said it has been inundated with calls from employers who have been bombarded with holiday requests from staff to join the ‘Black Friday’ shopping frenzy on November 27.

It received almost 8,000 calls over the weekend from panicked bosses who fear that, failing to grant these requests, internet shopping will send their offices into productivity meltdown on the day.

Employment Law director of Peninsula, Alan Price, said: “Black Friday has gone from an American tradition to a Western phenomenon, taking the UK by storm last year and set to increase in size this year.

"While this is positive news for the economy, what is not widely considered is how this excitement to grab a bargain will affect employers in terms of productivity due to employees surfing the net.

“In my experience assisting companies of all sizes, employers often plan for the expected demand in annual leave surrounding main holiday times including Easter, Summer and Christmas, but it would appear that employers are completely caught off guard with employees wanting a day off to hit the shops in hopes of securing the latest goods at a bargain price.”

He added: “The concern employers are feeling is completely warranted, as it is impossible to accept every holiday request that comes their way, particularly all for the same day and managing employee’s internet usage is something that requires constant attention.

"With the internet being an integral tool in the working environment and with every employee having access to it, unauthorised conduct can spiral out of control and policing employees' internet usage can feel like an overwhelming task.

“It is vital that employers ensure that their HR policies are up-to-date, covering all employee actions and behaviour with regards to Black Friday or any other major event.

"These are likely to include policies relating to absenteeism and internet usage, specifically what websites employees can and can’t access. Communicating these policy updates to employees and making them aware of the consequences of not following the correct procedures, should help reduce the number of unauthorised conduct.”

He said: “Remember, monitoring internet usage is key. Having a policy is all well and good, but the work it took to put that in place will fall by the way-side if employers do not devise a method to consistently observe how their employees are spending their time online.

“We have all heard the saying by failing to prepare you are preparing to fail, well this definitely rings true in this situation.